Term
| Requirement to Acquire Health and Safety Assistance |
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Definition
- MHSWR 1999 Regulation 7
- Appoint ≥one competent person to assist in compliance
- Arrange for these people to cooperate
- Ensure number, time and means at disposal are adequate
- If not employees, provide with information
- Inform of any person under fixed contract or in employment business
- Appoint competent employees in preference to others
- Note: Self employed or partners do not need to appoint anyone if they themselves are competent
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Term
| Role of Health and Safety Practitioner |
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Definition
- Provide information and guidance
- Support line management with co-ordination of H&S work
- Monitor effectiveness of actions to meet responsibilities
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Term
| Function of Health and Safety Practitioners |
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Definition
- Identify problems (including hazards)
- Assess the need for action
- Assist with the assessment of risks
- Design and develop strategies and plans
- Advise on relevant current best practice for prevention
- Present themselves and their advice in an independent manner
- Promote and communicate health, safety and welfare advances and practices
- Assist with the implementation of these strategies and plans
- Evaluate their effectiveness
- Maintain records relating to health and safety performance
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Term
| Competence and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) |
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Definition
- Competency = "The ability to undertake responsibilities and perform activies to a recognises standard on a regular basis. It is a combination of skills, experience and knowledge."
- Training is an important component of establishing competence, but is not suffience on its own.
- ACOP to MHSWR 1999 Reg 7:
- Understanding of relevent current best practice;
- Awareness of limitations of one's own experience and knowledge;
- Willingness and ability to supplement existing experience and knowledge, where necessary by obtaining external help and advice.
- HS Practitioners need to keep updated with current best practice and changes in law/technology.
- CPD portfolio should state aims and objectives, and plan to achieve them, logging actions to reach these goals.
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Term
| Ethics in Health and Safety Practice |
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Definition
- Ethics = The study of moral stands and how they affect conduct
- Ethics are rules and values of conduct that society expects of an individual with respect to their position and role
- Professional bodies frequently use Code of Ethics as membership requirement e.g. IOSH, RoSPA
- Practitioners should not allow their decisions to be influenced to the detriment of health and safety, and must act "without fear or favour"
- Conflicts of interest should be dealt with ethically by declaring the conflict to all relevant parties at the earliest opportunity, and not allowing
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